Chapter 1093

The Manghuang Mountain was the desolate range stretching several hundred li to the north of Zhenbei.

Because this mountain produced no cultivation resources whatsoever, and bordered the extremely dangerous Ten Thousand Great Mountains, very few people ever came here.

"To enter our Feihuang Town, you must pay the entry fee — ten taels of fine silver, no credit."

Hearing Gai Nie say he had come to gather herbs, the big fellow grinned, spread open that large hand, and rubbed his fingers together in front of Gai Nie.

Even entering Xianyang City wouldn't require a ten-tael entry fee.

Let alone this Feihuang Town, a remote little town with fewer than a hundred households, not even a thousand.

These people were in fact trying to force Gai Nie to leave the market town!

Gai Nie had never wanted trouble, after all the immediate priority was finding the Fire Monkey, which mattered more.

Since this Feihuang Town didn't welcome him, he prepared to withdraw from the market town as well.

Suddenly, he heard, a hundred paces away, a voice coming from the only inn of this Feihuang Town,

"Big Brother, did that Fire Monkey really enter this Manghuang Mountain?"

Gai Nie's heart stirred, and he immediately channeled his skill to his ears, tilting his head to listen.

Manghuang Mountain was only a hundred li across — if the Fire Monkey were really in Manghuang Mountain, why had the Fire Bodhi the divine physician given him shown not the slightest reaction?

"That's right! If you don't believe me, ask Old Six — he's the one who spotted the Fire Monkey's trail.

It's just that the strength of that group, Old Six alone couldn't handle them.

That's why we invited all of us Six Ghosts of the Yellow River, to take a gamble together.

If we get the Fire Monkey, and then find the Mud Bodhisattva…"

That leader spoke in a pressed, very soft voice.

If not for Gai Nie's cultivation being no mean feat, at such a distance he would absolutely not have been able to hear it.

It's just that when the leader spoke at the end, his voice was almost inaudible.

Gai Nie frowned, preparing to step forward two paces.

"Hey! I'm talking to you, kid — are you looking for a beating?"

Seeing that Gai Nie not only hadn't paid the entry fee, but had also acted as if the men weren't there, taking two steps toward the market town,

the big fellow's underling immediately drew a small knife, preparing to teach Gai Nie a lesson.

"Here's the entry fee!"

Now that he had news of the Fire Monkey, Gai Nie naturally wouldn't leave.

Before that man could act, he casually tossed out a silver ingot — and as luck would have it, it struck right on the hilt of his knife.

Then with a light flick, it landed in the big fellow's palm.

"You…"

The underling was driven mad with rage — Gai Nie's little trick had actually ruined his small knife with a single silver ingot.

With a clever twist of force, he had pinned the small knife dead inside its sheath.

No matter how hard the man pulled, he couldn't draw it out.

Furious, he wanted to slap Gai Nie right there on the spot.

Fortunately, the big fellow had a sharp eye — seeing Gai Nie's move, he immediately knew Gai Nie was no small talent, and how would he dare offend him.

He casually grabbed his underling's hand, and made an inviting gesture toward the inside of the market town,

"Hero, please, come in."

The Wu Lin was just like this — the weak were prey to the strong, the strong were honored.

Gai Nie's silver-ingot toss had already displayed his extremely precise control of force.

If that silver ingot hadn't been meant to ruin the small knife, but had been thrown at the men's throats instead —

Even the leading big fellow asked himself if he could have taken it.

With that, how would the big fellow dare to stop him.

Gai Nie said no more, tugged the brim of his bamboo hat down over half his face, and walked inside.

That inn really wasn't far from the town entrance.

But by the time Gai Nie reached the inn's door, though he had kept listening all the way, he still hadn't heard any more voices.

It was as if those so-called Six Ghosts of the Yellow River didn't exist at all.

"Sir, are you stopping for a meal or staying the night?"

The moment Gai Nie reached the inn's door, a sharp-eyed waiter came up to greet him.

"Staying the night…"

Though the voices of the Six Ghosts of the Yellow River were gone, Gai Nie felt certain those six were inside this inn.

If that were so, he might as well stay.

Once he found them, he'd ask about the Fire Monkey and decide from there.

"Right away! Sir, please, come this way."

The waiter, overjoyed, reached to take Gai Nie's bundle.

But inside that bundle was the Fire Bodhi — how could he hand it to anyone else.

"No need, you lead the way."

Gai Nie waved his hand, refusing.

The waiter naturally said nothing more, and led the way ahead.

Once inside the inn's main hall, Gai Nie finally realized —

this small frontier town's inn was at this moment packed with Wu Lin people.

Every one of them carried blades and swords at their sides, gathered in clusters of three or five.

From their clothing and appearance, it was impossible to tell where they had come from.

Hearing Gai Nie frowned, wondering what on earth was going on in this small town that had drawn so many jianghu people.

Could it be that this Fire Monkey had drawn so many people seeking it?

Seeing Hearing Gai Nie come in, the Wu Lin people in the main hall didn't look over, but they all stole glances at Hearing Gai Nie, whether intentionally or not.

Clearly, they were full of wariness toward Hearing Gai Nie's arrival.

Hearing Gai Nie only gave a casual sweep of his gaze and paid it no further mind.

The hall was full of martial artists, yet not one of them was his match.

He followed the waiter and went straight up to the second floor.

"Honored guest, our inn only has this one room left. You'll have to put up with it."

The waiter pushed open a room at the end of the second floor, and a wave of cluttered, stale air rushed toward them.

Even without going in, Hearing Gai Nie knew this room was actually a storage room.

"Recently, a lot of Wu Lin people have come to our Feihuang Town to treasure-hunt.

That's why all the guest rooms were booked up long ago.

This one is a storage room, sure enough, but there's a small bed in it. If you don't mind, you can stay here.

If you do mind, then you'll have to go stay outside the town."

Without waiting for Hearing Gai Nie to speak, the waiter immediately explained.

Only now did Hearing Gai Nie realize that all these Wu Lin people had come for treasure-hunting.

But what treasure were they seeking?

"No matter! Traveling away from home, how can everything be so perfect?"

Hearing Gai Nie had been used to hardship since childhood. Even in the Xianyanggong of Great Qin, he had always been hard on himself — plain tea and simple meals were enough to satisfy him.

Though this storage room was a mess, he had no objections.

It was nothing more than a temporary place to stay; who knew how long he'd even be here.

"Right! Honored guest, as long as you're willing to stay, that's good."

The waiter's face lit up with joy — it turned out no one wanted this storage room.

These past few days, although people had kept coming to lodge, the moment they saw the storage room they would curse and leave.

Only this sucker before him was actually willing to pay to stay here.

The waiter spread his hands and said,

"That'll be one hundred taels of silver, please!"